Reserve time

Q. I served six years active duty with the Navy and 16 years with the Air Force Reserve. I bought back the six active years, as I am employed with the U.S. Postal Service. I retired from the Air Force Reserve back in 2011. How does the buy back help/hurt my military reserve retirement pay when I am 65?

A. The fact that you made a deposit to get credit for your active-duty service will have no effect on your reserve retired pay. You’ll be entitled to both benefits, with no reduction in either of them.

4 Comments

Pretty sure you will be eligible for your AF Reserve Retirement pay beginning at age 60 but you have to apply for it 3 – 6 months in advance. Check with your service (AFPC) for the proper details and forms. Also, it is correct this won’t affect your civil service retirement.